Transitions

As the novel's plot line is the coming of age story of a young girl, the theme of transitions is inevitable. The most obvious one at the beginning of the story is the death of Julie's mother, which alters Julie's living situation, but also her sense of security in the world. As a young girl, Julie must now direct her affections away from a missing mother to her Aunt Cordelia and in a smaller part, to her sister Laura. Julie's father is essentially absent from her life so Julie must make the transition to her new life with the help of Aunt Cordelia's structure and regimen. There are other obvious transitions for Julie such as her leaving the one room schoolhouse to attend high school in town and her ultimate decision to leave town to attend the state university.